The Renaissance

1. The Renaissance (1485-1660)

2. The Renaissance • Renaissance means rebirth, specifically of the intellectual and artistic energies of the ancient Greeks and Romans. • Europe moved away from medieval habits of thought and turned toward the modern. • People valued arts and individual conscience. • Also believed in humanism: the renewed interest in human life on Earth, as opposed to the afterlife or God.

3. The Renaissance • Key to these developments was the invention of printing. • In 1453, Johannes Gutenberg set up the first printing press in Germany. • Soon after they appeared all across Europe, and people began to read and think for themselves.

4. The Beginnings of the Tudor Dynasty • From 1455-1485 England was torn by the civil War of the Roses between houses Lancaster and York. • The war ended when Lancaster, Henry Tudor, defeated the YorkistRichard III. • Henry married Elizabeth of York, uniting the two houses. • Became Henry VII, first king of the Tudor Dynasty.

5. The Beginnings of the Tudor Dynasty • Henry VII proved to be a very capable leader. • He rebuilt the nation’s treasury, established a powerful central government, and built a fleet of English ships that formed the basis of English power. • England began to explore the New World, which led to the colonization of America.

6. The Beginnings of the Tudor Dynasty • Henry VII died in 1509,leaving the throne to his son, Henry VIII. • Henry VIII was one of the most important figuresin English history. • Strong-willed and self-absorbed, he furtherincreased the power of the English monarchy.

7. The Protestant Reformation • In 1517, German monk Martin Luther nailed his “95 Theses” to the door of a Catholic church. • The theses were a list of objections to the beliefs and practices of Catholicism.

8. The Protestant Reformation • Luther believed that people were fundamentally evil and could only become good through God, rather than earthly kindnesses or good deeds. • He opposed the church’s sale of indulgences, which were pardons for sins that people could buy. • He also challenged the Pope’s authority, saying that religionis a matter of individualconscience rather than groupworship.

9. The Protestant Reformation • John Calvin of Switzerland took Luther’s ideas on Original Sin one step further. • He said that all events were preordained by God, and that God already decided who will be saved and who will be damned. • The Calvinist Doctrine, known as predestination, later became the central belief of the Puritan Movement.

10. The Protestant Reformation • The Protestant Reformation made its way to England because Henry VIII wanted a son. • He blamed his wife, Catherine of Aragon,for only producing daughters. • He soon fell in love with Anne Boleyn, a young woman of his court.

11. The Protestant Reformation • Divorce at the time was not allowed, so Henry broke from the church. • He established the Church of England, or Anglican Church, of which he was the supreme ruler. • He granted himself a divorce from Catherine and married Anne. • He dismantled the Catholic Church in England, seizing its land and wealth.

12. The Protestant Reformation • Anne Boleyn gave birth to a daughter named Elizabeth, but never produced a male heir. • Henry convicted her of adultery and had her beheaded. • He later married Jane Seymour, who gave birth to a son named Edward.

13. The Protestant Reformation • When Henry died in 1547, the sickly, nine year-old boy became King Edward VI. • During Edward’s short reign, Protestantism spread through England. • He died at the age of 15, leaving the throne tohis half-sister, Mary I.

14. Mary I and the Counter Reformation in England • Mary I, daughter of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon, was a staunch Catholic, and she tried to restore power to the Catholic Church in England. • She restored Catholic practices to Anglican services. • Also made the Pope head of the English church. • Later married her Catholic cousin, Phillip II of Spain.

15. Mary I and the Counter Reformation in England • The English people resented her marriage to a Catholic Spaniard. • Mary met opposition with absolute brutality. • She ordered the deathof all practicing Protestants, earningherself the title Bloody Mary.

16. The Elizabethan Age • Mary’s successor, Elizabeth I, was one of the greatest English monarchs. • Under her reign, England became the most powerful nation in Europe.

17. The Elizabethan Age • Elizabeth remained unmarried, leadingother rulers to hopefor a marital allianceto the English throne. • She built up theEnglish Navy, second only to the Spanish Armada. • She also reestablished the Church of England with a policy of moderation, ending the persecution of Protestants and tolerating Catholics.

18. The Elizabethan Age • However, her Catholic cousin Mary Stuart, or Mary Queen of Scots, also wanted the throne. • English Catholics wanted Mary for their queen, because Catholics did not recognize Henry VIII’s divorce and second marriage, making Elizabeth, in their eyes, a child born out of wedlock. • Mary plotted to kill Elizabeth and was imprisoned for 19years and later executed.

19. The Elizabethan Age • In 1588, Philip II of Spain attacked England’s naval fleet. • This widower of “Bloody Mary” had hoped to return Catholicism to England, but severed ties once Mary Queen of Scots was executed. • He attacked England’s Naval fleet, and the English Navy defeated the Spanish Armada, making England the greatest military power in all of Europe.

20. Literature During the English Renaissance • Elizabeth’s court became the center of an exuberant culture of literature. • The most famous English poets emerged during the Renaissance, including Philip Sidney, Christopher Marlowe, and Edmund Spencer.

21. Literature During the English Renaissance • However, the greatest literary achievements were in the field of drama. • In the past, almost all plays had some sort of religious theme. • By the end of the 15thCentury, plays with nonreligious plots and characters began to appear.

22. Literature During the English Renaissance • Great Renaissance playwrightsinclude William Shakespeare, Christopher Marlowe, and Ben Jonson. • Two major “stars” on stage were Edward Alleyn and Richard Burbage.

23. Elizabethan Tastes and Attitudes • The most striking feature of Elizabethan artistic taste was delight in elaborate patterns and complicated ornaments. • For us, artificialhas a negative connotation. • For Elizabethans, it was a term of praise, for that which is artificial is made by human skill and ingenuity.

24. Elizabethan Tastes and Attitudes • Elizabethans saw the world as a vastand unified hierarchy. • Believed in the “Great Chain of Being,” where every existing being or thing was ranked within a category. • The lowest group was all matter with no spirit (aka a rock). • The highest group was all spirit with no matter (aka God).

25. James I, First of the Stuart Kings • Elizabeth died in 1603, ending the Tudor Dynasty. • Her cousin, James VI of Scotland, became James I of England. • Like Elizabeth, James was a Protestant, but sympathized with Catholics. • He was also a great patron of literature and the arts.

26. James I, First of the Stuart Kings • James I also believed in the Divine Right of Kings. • This was the belief that God appointed him to the throne and that challenges to his authority were challenges against God. • The idea of the Divine Right of Kings led to the growing resentment of the common people. • When James died in 1625, his son, Charles I, became king.